Meet Dr. Robinson

 

Patricia A. Robinson, Ph.D., brings a unique combination of skills and experience to law enforcement training.  With both street experience as a police officer and a broad instructional background, she designs and delivers realistic, practical training that really works.

 

Law Enforcement Experience

 

Dr. Robinson spent ten years as a certified police officer.  From 1991-2000, she worked full-time for the Madison, Wisconsin Police Department.  For the first five years, she worked the street as a patrol officer.  For the last four, she was a full-time training officer, teaching both recruit officers in the departmental academy and veteran officers at in-service training.  She was state-certified to instruct in the following areas:

 

• Basic Patrol Operations
• Community Oriented Policing
• Criminal Code
• Crisis Intervention
• Defense and Arrest Tactics
• Firearms
• Interviewing and Interrogation
• Investigations
• Report Writing
• Vehicle Contacts

 

After retiring from the City of Madison Police Department in 2000 and assuming a position at the Wisconsin Department of Justice, she maintained her certification as a commissioned police officer by working part-time for the Town of Madison Police Department as the department’s training officer until leaving Wisconsin at the end of 2002.

 

Curriculum Development and Instructional Experience

 

Dr. Robinson’s curriculum development and instructional experience is broad, ranging from teaching undergraduates in a traditional university classroom, to online delivery of courses, to continuing education for adult learners, as well as training law enforcement officers—both recruits and veterans.

 

In 2000, Dr. Robinson was named Law Enforcement Education Director for the State of Wisconsin.  She is the principal architect of the expanded basic training curriculum for the state.  Its innovative approach incorporates scenario- and simulation-based training throughout, integrating tactical and relational skills seamlessly to prepare officers for the complex demands of 21^st-century law enforcement.  She wrote new texts for six of the curriculum areas, and continues to consult with the Wisconsin Department of Justice to improve law enforcement training.

 

Also in 2000, Dr. Robinson joined the adjunct faculty of Ottawa University (Phoenix), where she developed and now teaches a highly rated internet-based undergraduate course in Race, Crime, and Social Policy. 

 

University settings are nothing new for Dr. Robinson.  After earning her Ph.D. in 1978, she joined the faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering where she taught technical writing until 1991. During those years she taught a variety of undergraduate courses, served as the first Director of the Technical Communication Certificate program, and was named Manager of Campus Courses for her department. 

 

While at the University Dr. Robinson also served as program director and primary instructor for continuing education seminars for practicing technical writers and engineers.  She continues to instruct regularly in continuing-education seminars offered by the University of Wisconsin.

 

Current Interests

 

Since leaving the Wisconsin Department of Justice to do full-time consulting, Dr. Robinson has focused on helping law enforcement agencies reduce liability exposure by improving training, particularly by using scenario-based training.  Other areas of interest include improving report writing training (including use-of-force reporting), and addressing gender issues in training (especially in physical skills areas).  She contributes regularly to professional law enforcement publications and is a regular presenter at ASLET’s International Training Seminars.

 

 

Madison, WI police Dept. Training Team, 1997